What do you want buried with you? The Egyptians had a soul house - a miniature clay building with an open front space. Sounds good - ensuring you have a house in heaven. And then what does the article say is put in the house? Loaves of bread, lettuce and an ox-s head? Where there leftovers they could identify? Who wants an ox’s head buried with them? Or an anything head? What a distance of cultural norms when you think of it.
The actual news was the finding of a complete handprint underneath the soul house. That would be an archaeologist’s dream.
So a small news items on the Antique Roadshow seemed on topic. Things that have immense value. This was about a couple who brought in a painting . The appraiser told them the backstory that the painter was a celebrity artist in the Victorian age. Next, was that the painting was of Dr Thomas Bond who did research on Jack the Ripper. And then the valuation between 10,000 to 15,000 pounds. That’s over $18.000 Canadian. A great Antiques Roadshow moment.
Isn’t that the fun of the British Antique Roadshow? Things in the back cupboard for 50 or 150 years, passed down the generations, being ignored except for this single moment. And the consistent story the owners seem to repeat this simple phrase: “It’s not going anywhere.” Gerry thinks they rehearse this with the show staff ahead of time.
Ha, ha. And what about Antique roadshow jokes:
I brought in my great-grandmother’s 19th century vase, and the appraiser said it was in excellent condition, “especially since it’s actually a 1990s souvenir from a gift shop.”
The most terrifying words on the show aren’t “This is a fake,” but rather, “…and because you cleaned it with furniture polish, you’ve removed almost all the value.”
Or what about this?
Guy walks into an antique shop…and asks: “What’s new?”
Here’s an antique shop in Port Credit…makes you wonder what old sewing machines might be worth.
